The day I was fired, I felt a wave of relief, however I was also numb - how did this happen to me? I am a good employee. I have good attendance. My safety record is awesome. My performance reviews are always way above "satisfactory". What do I do and what comes first?
STEP ONE
If YOU had any of these feelings, one of the first things you should do, while everything is fresh in your mind, is to sit down and write down everything you can remember from the meeting where you were told you were fired or laid off. This information may become necessary should your former employer fight you on receiving unemployment benefits. You may need to provide details from your last meeting, or from previous meetings, to the people at your local employment/unemployment office.
When trying to remember the details, try to include:
- people present in the meeting
- date and time of the meeting
- what each person said
- what your responses were
- what documentation was present for you to review
- what you did or did not sign
- if you were forced or pressured to resign (example: "you can either resign or be fired, however if we fire you, your reputation will be damaged").
When writing, proofread the documentation several times. Ask someone you trust to proofread your notes too, asking them to not only find mistakes, but to provide feedback as to whether or not he/she understands what you are trying to say.
STEP TWOFile for unemployment benefits even if you were fired. The agency handling unemployment benefits in your state will investigate the situation and determine whether or not you can and will receive benefits. However....you can't receive benefits if you don't file for unemployment.
STEP THREE- Create a BUDGET
You need to determine exactly how much money is going out of the household as well as how much will be coming in (alimony, child support, unemployment insurance, etc). To help you, you need a budget. If you do not have "a handle" on your expenses and income, you will (1) not know how long you can last as an unemployed person, (2) not know how to effectively negotiate for a new salary and (3) will add unnecessary stress to an already stressful situation.
There are many forms "out there" you can use, however your family budget doesn't have to be fancy. Take a piece of paper and have two sections: one for outgoing expenses and one for any monies coming into your household.
In the column for outgoing expenses, some expenses might include:
- mortgage/rent
- homeowners/renters insurance
- electric
- gas/propane/coal/oil
- water
- sewage
- garbage
- vehicle payments
- vehicle insurance
- estimated fuel expenses
- food
- prescriptions
- medical insurance
- life insurance
- credit card expenses
- student loan(s)
For the income column, some funding sources might include:
- alimony
- child support
- retirement
- severance
- savings
- unemployment
STEP FOUR
After you finish roughing out a budget, you may need to call the companies with which you are dealing to see if they will lower your monthly payments and/or lower (better to see if they will do both) your interest rates. If you have been a good customer and especially if you have a good credit record, companies will tend to want to work with you and keep you as a valued customer.
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